Had DBGT been a coaster or a more well-received dark ride, would people feel the same way about Thorpe that they do currently?
It's a good point; had 2016 seen a largely well-received investment, things would feel very different. There's even a (slim) chance Thorpe still could have ended up with a 2020 major investment too.
There's so many ifs and buts, but whilst it would not feel as long since something major, I think it would only mask some of the other issues the park have, like a slowly ageing line up and pretty much a lack of anything worthwhile in non-major years.
If Thorpe have got a new coaster truly in the works, then surely we would've seen plans submitted by now? Especially since Loggers Leap is beginning demolition.
March 2024 is still the best part of 2.5 years away, which is more than enough time for the park to file for planning permission, surely? Swarm’s wasn’t filed until February 2011, and I think Saw’s was October 2007. They’ve got plenty of time yet.
The park have good relations with the council and will be in regular contact. If they're planning on building a big new ride any time soon, the park will almost definitely be having conversations with them, to give a forewarning, to get the best chance of approval, etc. This will be even more true given the lack of a MTDP, which would speed up the process of an application if the park were submitting plans under pre-determined guidelines.
I think this is the thing, parks submit planning applications because of the formalities required. By the time they're at the point of submission, I don't think there's any
real doubt in their mind it will be rejected.
As Matt says, the previous two coasters had planning applications submitted 13-16 months before the ride opened. Stealth had plans go in in August 2004, so 19 months before opening. If 2024 is the magic year, then next year at some point makes sense for seeing coaster plans.
Sorry to double post, but rumours are now rife on Twitter that Rocky Express and Old Town are closing for good after today, and there are supposedly even videos of a group of enthusiasts riding Rocky Express for the “last ever cycle” at 2pm today… take from that what you will.
It's funny how these rumours spread so quickly on final days. Is it something that the park planned to "leak"? Is it just Chinese whispers from one person which just went really quick? How many people have known this for a while and have sat on it?
I very much am under the impression that Rocky Express will not be returning next year (though with the park still to have full park buyouts this coming weekend, yesterday almost definitely wasn't its last ever cycle...). But one should not take these things for absolute definite until it's confirmed one way or another.
If we put two and two together would that mean Lumber Jump and Timber Tug are going too? I'd assume so, but at the same time I wouldn't rule out them either staying or especially being relocated. They could fit pretty well into Amity (I perfectly agree with people who think they won't as well), but where?
I guess nothing has been said about Timber and Lumber because, simply put, they don't have the same appeal. Rocky is a ride that's been at the park for over 30 years; it's got that history in the park. Of course, many enthusiasts still largely ignored it until yesterday's "Oh bugger, it might be leaving, I should ride it", but heyho.
Timber and Lumber could be moved to round by Depth Charge - Containment is no longer used and the shipping containers are just awkwardly sat there. The slides associated to the beach have been closed all year. There's even the patch of grass to the left of the Dome if the park really wanted to put them there. Whether they will is a different matter. But one would hope they understand that the removal of three 0.9m rides would be a huge hit given that, despite all their efforts, families with small children will always continue to visit.
Its such a big dead area of land espesocally outside of Fright Nights,
This is an interesting point. Outside of Fright Nights it's very quiet. During Fright Nights though, it's a big hub of activity. Two mazes and scare zone were there this year. Okay, it's been announced to be Platform's last year, but Creek Freak Massacre is presumably still staying. Would be very strange for that to hit the chopping block too unannounced, especially as it was very well received in 2019.
I guess Rocky Express could simply have hit the end of its life / the park don't consider it worth spending the money on it any more. And rather than having a larger dead area during the season, they could move the remaining two rides, and just open up that part of the park for Fright Nights. Obviously there's the Platform 15 / Loggers discussion, which still suggests something else is coming, but I don't expect to see that part of Old Town turn into a proper construction with lots of mud any time soon.
